Inspector Hector Plaque Detector Pre-Brush Rinse for Kids

Review by daisymae76

March, 27 2008

Pros: may motivate kids to brush

Cons: mint flavor is strong, doesn't work very well

As a child, I remember using a red colored rinse in my mouth that was supposed to highlight areas of plaque and show what areas need to be brushed. The new Inspector Hector Plaque Detector Pre-Brush Rinse for Kids is the same type of product except it is bright blue in color. The idea is the same though. You swish the product around in your mouth and areas of plaque will turn blue and show you where to brush. So how did this product perform? Let's just say this one won't be a staple in our medicine cabinet.

About the ProductInspector Hector Plaque Detector Pre-Brush Rinse for Kids is bright blue in color and comes in a clear bottle. The bottle contains 16.9 fl. oz. To dispense the product, you gently squeeze the bottle. There is a small tube in the bottle that leads up to a small compartment in the neck of the bottle. As you gently squeeze the bottle, the compartment fills up with the perfect amount of rinse for you which is 10 ml. Then you either drink it straight from the bottle or pour it into a separate cup.

The rinse is marketed for children aged 6-12 although adults and older kids could certainly use the product.

To use, just squeeze the bottle to dispense the rinse. Swish it around in your mouth for 30 seconds and then spit it out. Your teeth and mouth will be tinted a light blue color. Areas with more plaque will be tinted a darker blue. Then when you brush your teeth, focus on the areas that are more blue to remove all the plaque.

Our Experience My son is a under the recommended age limit being only 3.5 years, but brushing teeth is a major chore in our house so I decided to let him try it to see if it would motivate him to brush. He can swish and spit, but we did a quick practice with water first and I stressed to him that he could not swallow the rinse.

I filled the top of the bottle with the 10 ml and poured it into a cup for my son. It was way too much liquid for his mouth. He could only handle a third of it. He swished it around for a few seconds before spitting it out. He was not able to do the full 30 seconds. I realized he is a bit young for this product so I expected him to not be able to follow the directions exactly.

I had read other reviews where people talked about the blue rinse flying all over the sink. My son didn't have that problem. Yes, there was blue in the sink, but it wasn't any messier than when he spits after brushing his teeth. It rinsed away with a few splashes of water and was no big deal.

After he has spit, I checked out his mouth. I noticed that his entire mouth was tinted light blue. His teeth, tongue, lips, and some of the skin surrounding his mouth were all blue. My son thought it was very cool and happily went to work brushing all the blue away. I didn't notice any areas of dark blue. He was able to get the blue off quite easily, but it could have been because he didn't swish as long as he was supposed to.

Next I decided to give it a try. I drank my 10 ml of rinse and swished it all around my mouth. For a product marketed towards kids, I think this is really minty. As I was swishing, it definitely burned the inside of my cheeks like it does when I use a regular adult mouthwash. I can't imagine kids liking the flavor. Maybe the bubble gum is better for kids.

I spit the blue out into the sink with no problems. A few quick splashes of water made all the blue disappear. My mouth was tinted a lovely shade of blue. I looked around for areas of dark blue. I did find a couple of spots between my teeth so I took that as a reminder that I needed to floss. My teeth all just looked light blue. I brushed like I normally would and the blue came right off. I really don't understand why my entire mouth being tinted blue shows me where to brush. Obviously, we are supposed to brush all of our teeth, but if everything is blue, how do we know what areas to focus on? It seems pointless to me.

We have used this product a few times and my son actually likes it quite a bit. He has been requesting to brush his teeth more and will pull out the bottle of Inspector Hector. So while it may not highlight areas to brush, it certainly has motivated my son and I'm all for that. Would I go buy a bottle of this stuff? Probably not. I don't think it really does anything and while my son thinks it's cool to have a blue mouth, he also thinks it's cool to pick his nose so I'm sure I can find something else to motivate him.